The name of our winner has been drawn, and she will get her hands on the 10-book prize pack, compliments of the folks at Solaris.

The prize pack includes:

- Extraordinary Engines, The Definitive Steampunk Anthology — Edited by Nick Gevers- Sideways in Crime — Edited by Lou Anders- The Solaris Book of New Fantasy — Edited by George Mann- The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction — Edited by George Mann- The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction Volume 2 — Edited by George Mann- Black Magic Woman, by Justin Gustainis- Bitterwood by James Maxey- Kéthani by Eric Brown- The Dragon’s Nine Sons, by Chris Roberson- War Machine by Andy Remic

The winner is:

- April Disney, from Everett, Washington, USA (rebelaessedai on wotmania.com)

- Interesting contributors, insightful content, and neat layout. All in all, a great addition to the SFF Blogosphere. (60 votes, 25%)

- Kind of "meh." I have to admit that I was expecting more from such a powerhouse in SFF publishing. (39 votes, 16%)

- Disappointing. Too little too late, I think. And most of the content can already be found on established sites by independent bloggers. (26 votes, 11%)

- I haven't been paying attention to Suvudu.com at all since its creation. (106 votes, 45%)

Well, it's obvious from the results and the low number of votes that Random House's SFF imprints have to do a little more to get the word about Suvudu out there. All the voters are members of the online community, and 45% of them haven't even checked out the website...

Our new survey asks you who's your favorite SFF artist? If your favorite is not among the selections, feel free to leave a comment with his or her name.:-) Here are a few samples from Komarck, Martiniere, Picacio, Lockwood, and Chong.

Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you! I'm giving away 55 speculative fiction titles of basically every subgenre out there, which amounts to more than a book to read every week for the next year!

The catch: I don't have enough money to pay for postage, so the winner will have to either come pick up the books (meaning that you are within driving distance of the Greater Montreal Area), or he or she must be willing to pay for shipping (at least 50$-75$ in Canada, and more elsewhere). Sorry, but I was about to donate those novels to a local library and I decided to make someone very happy instead. Hence, DO NOT register unless you are able to come and get the prize pack or pay for postage.

I've been meaning to interview Edelman ever since I read his scifi debut, Infoquake (Canada, USA, Europe) last spring, but I wanted to wait till I was done with the sequel, Multireal (Canada, USA, Europe) before doing so.

So here is a very interesting Q&A with the author. Give Infoquake and Multireal a shot, by the way. You won't be disappointed!

Patrick

----------------

- Without giving anything away, can you give potential readers a taste of the tale behind both INFOQUAKE and MULTIREAL.

The idea's fairly simple, actually. It's a world about a millennium in the future where programmers are in a cutthroat competition to create, sell, and market software that runs the human body. One of these entrepreneurs, a particularly brilliant and unethical businessman named Natch, suddenly finds himself in possession of a new technology called MultiReal. Its creator claims that the software can "create alternate realities." Nobody's quite sure what that means, but it's very clear that MultiReal has the power to change the world in very fundamental (and very dangerous) ways. So the question is, can Natch hold on to MultiReal in the face of all the business rivals, government agencies and shadowy figures that come after him? Does he want to hold on to it? Will he use the power of MultiReal for selfish ends? And so on.

- Tell us a little more about yourself. What is the "411" on David Louis Edelman?

I'm a web programmer and dot-com marketing guy by trade. I spent most of the '90s working in a succession of high-tech start-ups in the Washington, DC area. I saw the same things that most dot-com workers saw during that period: a lot of greed, a lot of ineptitude, and a lot of wackiness. I also worked briefly for MCI, and did some programming on websites for the FBI and the U.S. Army. Shortly after Y2K, I got fed up with the whole thing and decided to quit my job to write a novel. Since then I've been doing web programming freelance and part-time while I've been writing the Jump 225 Trilogy.

- INFOQUAKE is not your typical science fiction yarn. Can you tell us a little more about the road that saw this one go from manuscript form to finished novel? As an hybrid between a more traditional scifi book and the cutthroat world of financial markets, was it hard to sell the idea to editors?

It was a very hard sell. Not because of the manuscript itself, but because I had no fiction publishing credentials to my name except a story I sold to an online magazine in 1995. I spent a year trying to find an agent with nothing to show for it but a stack of form rejection letters. Finally I went to a friend of mine who runs a small publishing house in Baltimore for advice. He read Infoquake and loved it. He offered to represent me as my agent, and I figured I had nothing to lose. He sent the manuscript around to the big New York publishers, and lo and behold, I ended up at Pyr a few months later.

- What can readers expect from the final volume? Are any other novels planned in the same universe?

The question I get asked most often about the third book is whether it's really the end of the story. I've left so many storylines open in MultiReal that they think it'll take another two books to wrap it all up. But no, the Jump 225 Trilogy will definitely end at the conclusion of the third book. I'm not planning to write any more books in this universe after that, but I won't exclude the possibility in case somebody wants to throw a big pile of money at me.

- What's the progress report on the last volume? Any tentative title or release date yet?

Book 3 is going to be called Geosynchron. I think I'm about 80% of the way through the first draft, and I'm really, really hoping to finish it by the end of the year. As for release date, there's nothing definitive in place yet. Infoquake was released in July 2006, MultiReal was released in July 2008, and I'm going to try to finish Geosynchron early enough so Pyr can release it before July 2010. But no promises.

- Will you be touring to promote MULTIREAL this summer/fall? If so, are there any specific dates that have been confirmed as of yet?

I've been doing a handful of appearances here and there -- I was at Worldcon and Readercon (where Infoquake and MultiReal were part of the con's recommended reading list). I went to New York to appear on the Hour of the Wolf radio show. I'm doing a reading at my hometown Barnes & Noble in Reston, VA in September, then attending Capclave in Rockville, MD in October, and then I've got a number of book club appearances sprinkled in between.

- Lou Anders has brought Pyr to new heights. How would you describe the man and your relationship with him?

Lou has been absolutely terrific. He pulled me out of the agented slush pile and put my debut novel in a lineup next to books by Robert Silverberg, Mike Resnick, Ian McDonald, and Michael Moorcock. Anyone who's met him will tell you that he's clearly not just in this for the money. He really cares about science fiction and has a lot of big ideas about bringing our little niche to a wider audience. Not only that, but he's very interested in nurturing the careers of the authors in his lineup. I don't know how many editors you can say that about.

- Solaris just published the mass market paperback edition of INFOQUAKE on both sides of the pond. You rarely see different SFF publishers release trade and mass market versions of the same novel. How did that deal see the light?

The deal was put together by Pyr and Solaris. Pyr hasn't published any mass market paperbacks yet -- though they're starting soon -- and so this was a great opportunity to get Infoquake in front of a larger audience before MultiReal arrived in the stores. It seems to be working. People had trouble finding the trade version of Infoquake in the stores, but the mass market of Infoquake is popping up everywhere. I had a friend tell me that he saw three copies of the book on the shelves at the airport in frickin' Dayton, Ohio. We're all hoping that some of those mass market readers go on to find book 2 and then book 3 when it comes out.

- A wealth of information pertaining to both INFOQUAKE and MULTIREAL can be found on your website www.davidlouisedelman.com. You seem to have been extremely careful to prevent info dumps throughout both your novels. Since too much can be as bad as too little, was it difficult to find the right balance as far as how much technical and historical details to include in the narrative? In retrospect, do you feel that too much stuff might have been cut out to maintain the flow of the narrative?

It was a very hard balancing act. I tried very hard to define all of the new terms in context during the story, so you don't need to refer back to the ancillary material at all. But I wanted to make sure that readers interested in how the multi network functions or how the Defense and Wellness Council was founded could satisfy their curiosity. If I had the chance to write the entire series over again, I'd probably make it four books and take more time to weave the background information into the narrative. Science fiction readers aren't having any problems keeping up with all of it. But I do regret that some non-SF readers seem to be a little intimidated by the sheer mass of material there.

- What was the spark which generated the idea that drove you to write the Jump 225 trilogy?

Working in the dot-coms, definitely. I started out writing a much more humorous novel -- a single novel, actually, that was to be called Jump 225.7. It was more lighthearted and satirical in tone, which is why I came up with all the funny acronyms like L-PRACGs and OCHREs, and silly names like SeeNaRee and the Defense and Wellness Council. I literally finished the first draft of that book on September 10, 2001. Then a few days later I put the whole thing aside and started over. I had darker things on my mind then: the future of Western society, the longevity of capitalism and democracy, the underlying purpose of the human race. So the trilogy has turned out to be a somewhat unique mixture of those two moods.

- What do you feel is your strength as a writer/storyteller?

I feel like I'm very good at the worldbuilding aspect of things. Really, structure in general. The trilogy has layers and layers of metaphor in it, and I'm really quite proud of the way it all works together as an organic whole. My tendency is to wander off into history and background and structure, and sometimes I have to curb that impulse. If I had written The Lord of the Rings, it would have been three whole books of the Council of Elrond, and nobody would have read it.

- Were there any perceived conventions of the science fiction genre which you wanted to twist or break when you set out to write INFOQUAKE and its sequel?

Yes, I wanted to avoid the typical mindless action set-pieces that you find in a lot of bad SF, and bad novels in general. I really wanted to write an exciting novel about business. A lot of authors just use the business aspect as window dressing, and then quickly throw their characters into the same car chases and murder mysteries and gunfights. I wanted to write books that really are about the workplace, where the excitement revolves around product demos and marketing meetings and government hearings and that kind of thing. So that's what I've tried to do.

- How much of an honor was it to be nominated for the John W. Campbell Award?

Oh, it was an enormous honor, of course. There was a fantastic crop of new writers this year, and with people like Joe Abercrombie and Scott Lynch on the ballot I didn't expect to win. Especially since I didn't publish a single word of fiction in 2007, the year in contention. But I'm pleased I did as well in the voting as I did, and I'm very pleased that my good friend Mary Robinette Kowal went home with the award. She looks much better in the Campbell tiara than I would have.

- The fact that there is a website dedicated to your work is an indication that interaction with your readers is important to you as an author. How special is it to have the chance to interact directly with your fans?

Direct interaction is very important to me. So far I've been lucky enough to be able to directly interact with many of the people who've enjoyed my books online, through emails and blog comments and online forums. I've tried to stay active to some extent on social networks like MySpace, Facebook, GoodReads, and LibraryThing, and I've been able to chat with a lot of readers that way. (Links to all my social networking profiles are on my website -- come say hello!)

- Given the choice, would you take a New York Times bestseller, or a Hugo Award? Why, exactly?

No contest, I'd take the New York Times bestseller. Why? Because only a very, very small number of people vote for the Hugos. A few hundred people at most choose each year's winners. But to get to the NYT list, you need to sell thousands and thousands of books. That's a vote of confidence of a whole different order. (Don't get me wrong, I'd wet myself with excitement if I won a Hugo too.)

- What authors make you shake your head in admiration? Many scifi writers don't read much inside the genre. Is it the case with you?

Actually, I've spent most of my adult life reading out of genre. I read a lot of SF as a kid and have only gotten back into it over the past ten years. The authors who have inspired me the most are people like Thomas Pynchon, John Barth, Kurt Vonnegut, Franz Kafka, and Philip Roth. Inside genre, I'm particularly fond of George R.R. Martin, China Mieville, Philip K. Dick, Mervyn Peake, William Gibson, and J.R.R. Tolkien, to name a few.

- Cover art has become a very hot topic of late. What are your thoughts pertaining to that facet of a novel, and what do you think of the covers that grace your books?

Originally the cover for Infoquake was designed to appeal to folks outside of the genre, so your typical fund manager wouldn't feel embarrassed reading it on the subway. But my publisher discovered pretty quickly that the chain bookstores didn't like that cover, and the non-SF readers weren't paying much attention to the book anyway. So Pyr and Solaris both decided to go with the high-tech Stephan Martiniere cityscapes that are on the new editions. The publishers are the ones who have the final say on covers anyway; it's not up to me. But the Martiniere paintings are gorgeous and people seem to really dig them, so who am I to complain?

- More and more, authors/editors/publicists/agents are discovering the potential of all the SFF blogs/websites/message boards on the internet. Do you keep an eye on what's being discussed out there, especially if it concerns you? Or is it too much of a distraction?

Unfortunately, I pay too much attention to the blogosphere to ignore it, and not enough attention to really get a lot of useful information out of it. I do a lot of grazing and general news reading, but I don't delve too much into the SFF-specific discussions. Unless they're about me, of course. Google Alerts have proven a terrible distraction, and I'm afraid I spend much too much time reading the blog reviews and the Amazon comments. Trust me, if you mention the words "David Louis Edelman" just about anywhere on the Internet, I'll get an email about it within an hour or two. And chances are I'll be reading what you've got to say within an hour or two of that.

- Do you have any desire to write outside of the SF genre?

Definitely. I have early drafts of novels sent in contemporary Washington, DC and ancient Rome that I'd love to get a chance to finish one day. Plus a dark fantasy novel that may be the next thing on my plate. But right how I'm just trying to finish Geosynchron.

- With authors such as Alastair Reynolds, Peter F. Hamilton, Iain M. Banks, Richard Morgan and Neal Asher, British SF seems to be flourishing at the moment compared to a general downturn in the genre, particularly in the United States. Why do you think this may be?

Nothing against the Brits, but I think it's largely just a confluence of market factors. You get a few authors writing great, literate, money-making SF in the UK, and suddenly the publishers are pushing it and the critics are calling it a movement. Meanwhile in the US, you have Robert Jordan and Laurell K. Hamilton breaking out, and suddenly all of the publishers are pushing doorstopper fantasy novels and books about sexy vampire hunters. As a writer who networks with other writers, I can't help but take notice of these trends, but I really try to ignore them as much as possible. I'd prefer to be exploring things that nobody else is talking about.

- Honestly, do you believe that the speculative fiction genre will ever come to be recognized as veritable literature? Truth be told, in my opinion there has never been this many good books/series as we have right now, and yet there is still very little respect (not to say none) associated with the genre.

I'd like to think so. The good news is that as the Internet pushes us further and further into our specialized niches, there's plenty of room for scholarly exploration of the smallest subgenres. In fifty years, the concept of genre won't exist like it does today. High culture and low culture will all blend together in a big stew, and the snooty academics in the white towers won't worry about turning up their noses at what you put in your bowl.

You all know how much I enjoyed Ekaterina Sedia's The Secret History of Moscow (Canada, USA, Europe) last winter. As things stand, the novel is in my Top 5 of the year and its place seems to be quite secure. Hence, I was curious to see if I would get drawn into Sedia's newest offering as much as I was with her previous work.

Prime Books refers to it as "a steampunk novel of romance, political intrigue, and alchemy." One thing about The Alchemy of Stone is that the book is incredibly difficult to put in a nutshell. There are a number of interesting ideas throughout, but I felt that the author doesn't deliver the way she did with The Secret History of Moscow.

To begin with, the worldbuilding leaves a little to be desired. Sedia introduces the reader to Ayona, a city uncomfortably coming to terms with industrial development. But she offers us little more than a few glimpses about its past and how it shaped the political and social environment of this tale. I feel that a more in-depth elaboration on the history of the conflict and its protagonists would have been apropos.

The Mechanics' inventions continue to alter society as Ayona's inhabitants know it, while the Alchemists attempt to hold on to their ancient traditions. Yet the absence of depth in that regard means that the conflict between the two factions never truly grabs you. The problem is, this conflict is at the heart of the story. If you cannot bring yourself to care, it's hard to get sucked into the surrounding plotlines.

The most fascinating facet of The Alchemy of Stone is its main protagonist, Mattie. She's an emancipated automaton created by the Mechanic Loharri. Though he set her free, he still retains the key to her heart, and can thus control and manipulate her to a certain extent. Mattie's ponderings about the meaning of being alive and free are food for thought.

Unfortunately, the supporting cast is nowhere near as engaging as the automaton. Some characters show signs of brilliance, such as Loharri and Niobe, but they are never fleshed out in a manner that permits them to attain their full potential.

I seldom say this, but The Alchemy of Stone, weighing in at 304 pages, is not long enough. Ekaterina Sedia introduces us to an array of concepts and ideas and characters, yet she fails to expand on most of them is a way that would be satisfying.

Nevertheless, The Alchemy of Stone is an intriguing read. Sedia set up the bar pretty high with The Secret History of Moscow, and her latest work doesn't quite live up to the expectations generated by its predecessor. While The Secret History of Moscow delivered on all fronts, one reaches the end of The Alchemy of Stone with a sense of "what might have been." The potential was there, no doubt about it. I think that the author simply needed to run with those ideas a little more. . .

Just discovered that Rob tagged me. Holy shit, I'm going to suck at this one...

Here it goes:

From Box Office Mojo's list of Top 48 Sci-Fi Films Based on a Book (or Story) (1980- present). Some of the titles on this list look suspicious. (Was Cocoon really based on a piece of written fiction? There's a difference between an adaptation and a novelization.)

Here are the rules.

- Copy the list below.- Mark in bold the movie titles for which you read the book.- Italicize the movie titles for which you started the book but didn't finish it.- Tag 5 people to perpetuate the meme. (You may of course play along anyway.)

Well, I finally completed my two photo albums. 726 pics in total, which is a lot more than I intended. But I guess I saw too many beautiful things!

One thing about backpacking is that, for me at least, you pick up songs along the way that in the end will comprise the soundtrack of your trip. Unless you're on one of those crazy journeys that will see you visit 12 countries in 2 weeks, actually spending time in one region/country, hearing what's playing on the radio, at the bar, at the mall, in the clubs, etc, will allow you to discover a lot of things that you don't necessarily realize at first glance.

Music is a big part of my life, so I figure it's no surprise that I pick up a few tunes along the way. It doesn't matter whether you like those songs or not. As you keep hearing them, they become burned inside your brain and it's impossible to forget them. Soon enough, they become the soundtrack of your adventure. So much so that, even if you hate the song, the first thing you'll do when you get back is download it.

Here are the tunes that stuck for me this summer while touring around Poland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania:

This catchy song is a bit special because it's the first tune I remember hearing in Warsaw. It was my very first morning, and I had just realized that no one spoke any English. I was thus forced to go to McD's to get a McMuffin for breakfast, and that song was playing on the screens inside the restaurant. It followed me for the rest of the trip, and seemed to be playing every hour or so in Helsinki.

As the theme for the Euro 2008, I heard this song several times a day for the duration of the soccer tournament and beyond. Odd that this one didn't cross the Atlantic. Given Enrique Iglesias' popularity in North America, I was sure it would make its way to our shores...

I think this song played every night we went out and sat on one of those pleasant outdoor terraces in Wroclaw and Krakow. And I remember hearing it all the time in Riga.

I fully became aware of this song when its piano intro got tattoed inside my brain in Helsinki and I couldn't stop whistling it. It was quite popular in the Baltic States, and I heard it several times a day.

As you can see, it's a disparate bunch, but them's the breaks! You don't get to choose what you pick up. These tunes just seep into your subconscious and you're powerless. Like it or not, these 4 songs will forever be linked to all those great and not-so-great moments of my summer of 2008 adventure...

During our first interview, Erikson told me how much of an impact Glen Cook's books had on him and his own writing. I made a mental note to give the Black Company novels a shot, but it took me until now to do so.

I'm currently reading Cook's first Black Company omnibus, Chronicles of the Black Company (Canada, USA, Europe), and I'm loving it! It's like reading about the adventures of the Bridgeburners without any interruptions!

If, like me, you have yet to discover Glen Cook and you like Steven Erikson's The Malazan Book of the Fallen saga, you might want to check the Black Company out! The books might not be groundbreaking (though they were when they initially came out in 1984), but they are as entertaining as anything you're likely to read in the genre.

If you don't want to spend more money for the omnibus, all three volumes which comprise the book can still be purchased separately. Used editions can also be found for about a dollar or less.

Give the first volume, The Black Company (Canada, USA, Europe), a chance, and I'm persuaded that you'll be as hooked as I was!;-)

This tiny book has been staring at me from the piles of books waiting to be donated to local libraries since I received the ARC last winter. Though I was aware that this wasn't something I'd normally get into, Mr. Fooster Traveling on a Whim intrigued me in an odd sort of way.

It's referred to as a "visual novel," written by Tom Corwin and illustrated by Craig Frazier. In a nutshell, it's sort of a children's book for grownups. I feel that this could be a great work to share with a special child, one who's just learning how wonderful books can be. However, unless you're on the decidedly cheesy side, I doubt that most adults will get their fill from it. But as a sharing experience with a son, daughter, or another child, visiting Mr. Fooster's world of whimsy and imagination could be a real treat.

The premise is that questioning your assumptions could set you free. Mr. Fooster leaves his home one morning, and wandering aimlessly he takes the reader to a strange world. During his travels, his curiosity brings him to reflect on a number of quirky questions such as "Why are bathtubs always too short for comfort?"

Frazier's many illustrations add another dimension to this whimsical tale, creating an enjoyable atmosphere that, again, should appeal to children more than grownups.

Weighing in at only 101 pages, this short work can be read in about 15 minutes. One has to wonder why the publisher opted for a hardback release, as the price tag attached to it is simply too expensive to be worthwhile.

Be that as it may, I'd wholeheartedly recommend Mr. Fooster Traveling on a Whim to any parent looking for something to read with their children. To learn more about the visual novel, check out http://www.mrfooster.com/.

As I have nothing to compare it to, I can't possibly "score" this work. . .

With the Worldcon winding down in Denver, Colorado, and with the Hugo Awards coming under heavy criticism in recent years, do you believe it's time to rethink the entire process regarding SFF Awards?

298 votes were cast:

- Yes: SFF awards have so little credibility nowadays that they don't hold any sway over what I read. (32%, 98 votes)

- Yes: As long as they rely on such an obsolete and expensive voting system, the Hugo Awards' relevance will continue to dimish. (28%, 85 votes)

- No: The Hugo Awards have been run this way for years, and there is no reason to change its format or voting process. These awards are a genre institution, and they deserve more respect than they are getting at the moment. (10%, 30 votes)

- I don't care one way or the other... (28%, 85 votes)

This week we have a new surbey, this one regarding Herbert and Anderson's upcoming Paul of Dune. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Our American cousins must show patience (or order it from either Canada or the UK), as the US edition will be published by Tor Books in a couple of weeks!:-) It can now be bought at up to 50% off on Amazon!

For those interested in seeing a little bit of Poland, I have posted a number of photos from my collection on Facebook. The album is public, so feel free to check it out to discover how beautiful Warsaw, Gdansk, Wroclaw, and Krakow can be. And I'm not talking about the women, though that's another incentive for you!:p

This is just a small sample, as I have more than 1200 pics, but hopefully it will entice a few of you to visit what is a wonderful country.:-)

This latest anthology published by Subterranean Press proved to be an interesting read. Contrary to what the title implies, however, not all short stories are dark fantasy. Then again, the line which separates the various fantasy subgenres has become so blurred in recent years that all the short fiction contained within the pages of Subterranean: Tales of Dark Fantasy might just be dark fantasy after all.

The short stories showcased in this anthology are as disparate in style and tone as the authors who wrote them. Poppy Z. Brite, Mike Resnick, Joe R. Lansdale, Tim Powers, Rachel Swirsky, Darren Speegle, Caitlin R. Kiernan, William Browning Spencer, Kage Baker, Mike Carey, and Patrick Rothfuss have vastly different and discordant voices, which ensures that every single piece has its own "flavor." And it's this wide variety that makes Subterranean: Tales of Dark Fantasy an enjoyable reading experience.

As is the case with any SFF anthology, some short stories are more memorable than others. Though I didn't dislike any piece per se, "It Washed Up" by Joe R. Lansdale is the only one which completely failed to make an impression on me.

While I felt that Brite's "The Gulf," Swirsky's "Monstrous Embrace," and Resnick's "Alastair Baffle's Emporium of Wonders" were less inspired and thus left a little to be desired, I fully enjoyed Power's time-traveling "The Hour of Babel," Speegle's "The Lunatic Miss Teak," Kiernan's "The Steam Dancer (1896), and Baker's "Caverns of Mystery." Spencer's "Penguins of the Apocalypse" just might be the weirdest thing I've read in quite a while. The clash between the Muslim religion and Western culture appears to have been the inspiration behind Carey's "Face," which I liked quite a bit.

As a matter of course, the anthology's pièce de résistance is Patrick Rothfuss' "The Road to Levinshir," a portion of which will appear in the forthcoming The Wise Man's Fear. It shows an older, more mature Kvothe, and is a totally self-contained tale. Needless to say, it should whet your appetite for the sequel to The Name of the Wind!

All in all, the contrasting writing styles of the various contributors guarantee that there is something for everyone in Subterranean: Tales of Dark Fantasy.

Well, I just finished updating my categories and the links contained within each one. As always, I forgot some people, and I'm sorry for that. But you should know by now that I suck at this, and I will make it up to you when I go through the next update.:-)

I will likely play around with the categories in both righthand columns from time to time, yet this should be the new look for the blog. Many thanks to my friend Pat who found and hooked me up with this great template. I couldn't have done it without him! Not so much because he's a genius, but because I'm a total dumbass!;-)

I think the new look rocks, if I may say so myself!:p Hope you like it too! After nearly 4 years, we needed an extreme makeover.

Sadly for the haters, the Hotlist will continue to feature the same crappy content, courtesy of Yours Truly. You can't win 'em all. . .

Our winner will receive an Advance reading Copy of the Subterranean Press limited edition of Zafon's international bestseller, The Shadow of the Wind. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe, and http://www.subterraneanpress.com/.

Some of you may not have seen it, but I have a new poll pertaining to the relevance of the Hugo and other SFF awards going on at the moment. Feel free to take a second to vote!:-)

These are only preliminary results, but I'm a bit surprised that a vast majority of voters (thus far) care enough that they want to see some changes put into effect. I would have thought that a large chunk of the readers would have lost hope and not care anymore. . .

Here's a list of the 2008 Hugo winners (thanks to Larry for monitoring the whole thing!):

You might remember that Melinda Snodgrass' The Edge of Reason (Canada, USA, Europe) was one of the books GRRM forced me to read for losing that NFL football wager. Since I enjoyed the novel, I wanted to interview the author last spring, but life got in the way. So I thought I'd give her the opportunity to introduce herself in this Q&A!

Enjoy!:-)

---------------------

- Without giving anything away, can you give us a taste of the story that is THE EDGE OF REASON?

It's basically a story about the eons long battle between science and rationality and superstition and religion. A young police officer stumbles into this secret war and is recruited by a mysterious figure who turns out to have been the source of the Prometheus and Lucifer legends.

- Tell us a little more about yourself. What's the 411 on Melinda Snodgrass?

I'm a recovered lawyer who discovered that while I loved the law (particularly Constitutional law) I hated lawyers. My friends Vic Milan suggested I try writing, and here I am, years later, still writing. Thanks to encouragement from my friend George R.R. Martin I ended up working in Hollywood for a number of years. I'm still trying to be a writer with a foot in each camp -- Hollywood and publishing -- I'll let you know how that works out. On the more personal level -- I love to camp and hike, I was a classically trained opera singer and I still enjoy music though I don't sing any longer. Another hobby stole away my money and passion -- horses. I own a six year old Lusitano stallion named Vento da Broga, and he's going to be my new Grand Prix horse. I'm a dressage rider, and it's fun to train a young and very talented horse from the beginning.

- Can you tell us a little more about the road that saw this one go from manuscript form to finished novel?

I began writing this book with no idea or expectation it would sell. The idea came to me when I was sitting at El Pinto restaurant on December 31st, 1999 with Walter Jon Williams, Laura Mixon-Gould and Steve Gould. We were watching the celebrations going on around the world, and I suddenly said "It's the dawn of the 21st century. Where's my air car? Where's my Moon base." I was being a bit facetious, but I realized there was a serious component to the question. Why did people put so much credence in healing crystals and guardian angels and UFO abductions and Tarot Cards and Jesus appearing on a tortilla, rather then believing in chemistry, biology, physics, etc.? I thought, _maybe there's some reason, or some things that want us to believe in gibberish_. And that's where the idea began.

The next big hurdle was finding the right protagonist. I tried writing this first with a psychologist as the main character, but it just didn't work as well. I went back to my Hollywood training and looked at the three areas that always, reliably work for TV series -- cops, doctors and lawyers. I'd tried a doc. I had been a lawyer and really didn't want to use that world. I tried the cop, and it worked perfectly.

I also wanted to make sure that the underpinnings of my universe made sense so I really worked on the nuts and bolts of the "magic", and I found a surprising amount of support in the Bible to my premise.

- In your opinion, what makes THE EDGE OF REASON different from what's out there, and why should jaded readers give it a shot?

If people have felt uncomfortable with the power of the religious right in our political and daily lives, or if a reader is frustrated at how often the society wants to look back to some mythical "golden age", and wants a return to that better time rather than pushing forward into a exciting new future -- complete with air cars and Moon bases -- then I think this book is for them.

- What can readers expect from the upcoming sequel?

THE EDGE OF RUIN takes my protagonist into the halls of power as he, basically, tries to "pass the buck", but what he ultimately realizes is that he has to take command and make some very tough choices. I like to torture characters, and most of my stores grow out of a character in a particular situation rather than the situation.

- What's the progress report on the next volume? Any tentative release date yet?

The second book has been delivered to Tor and is scheduled for June 2009.

- Will you be touring to promote the book this summer? If so, are there any specific dates that have been confirmed as of yet?

I will attending a book seller's conference in Portland Oregon September 16th and 17th, and another book sellers conference Oct 4th in Oakland, CA. I don't have any information on the venues yet, but your friendly local bookstore might have the information. I'll also be at Worldcon in Denver and World Fantasy in Calgary.

- What do you feel is your strength as a writer/storyteller?

I think I create memorable characters, and I love to write dialogue. In fact I sometimes end up with my characters talking in a white room because I'm not great with description. It's a good thing I have my wonderful writer's group, Critical Mass, to help me with that. My other major strength is plot and structure. I really honed those skills in Hollywood where you've got to tell a story in a really economical way.

- Were there any perceived conventions of the genre which you wanted to twist or break when you set out to write THE EDGE OF REASON and its sequel?

I can't really think of anything. I just wrote the story I wanted to read. I guess I did want to create a hero who was the antithesis of the "Omni Competent Heinlein Hero". But that's the only thing I can come up with.

- There is a fine balance between the more thought-provoking concepts, the humor, and the characterization in THE EDGE OF REASON? Was it difficult to find where you had to draw the line, because I feel that overdoing it in any of the aforementioned categories could have killed the story?

It was tough finding the balance. I had to use my homeless Jesus like a strong spice. Too much and it could get campy. I also had to remove the Prometheus figure because he was the 800 pound gorilla and I had to have my hero have to summon the strength and courage to lead. And he only gets part of the way. He doesn't really learn to lead until The Edge of Ruin.

- The fact that there is a website dedicated to your work is an indication that interaction with your readers is important to you as an author. How special is it to have the chance to interact directly with your fans?

I was actually terrified to launch the website and blog, but my wonderful editor, Patrick Nielsen-Hayden, patted me on the shoulder, told me it would be okay, and sent me out there to meet potential readers. I've been getting a lot of emails from folks who have read THE EDGE OF REASON, and said very kind things. Some of the most gratifying letters have been from people who said they didn't think there was anyone else who felt the way they did, and it was such a relief to find they weren't alone in this questions. I enjoy blogging and I talk about everything from politics, to movies (I give reviews), the craft of writing, training the dressage horse, what I'm reading, etc. It's become a lot of fun, and I'm very grateful to Patrick for encouraging me to jump in.

- How much of an impact does your old friend George R. R. Martin's "patronage" benefit you in terms of exposure for a new release like THE EDGE OF REASON?

I'm not really sure how much cross-over readership there might be. George was very, very kind to take the time from his own work to read my novel and give me a wonderful blurb. I think people have niches they like (I know I do) and they like to read within those parameters. I had a lot of people who admired my work on Star Trek:TNG, but I'm not sure how many of them have rushed out to buy a book I wrote. Certainly when George mentions my novel favorably on his website it sure can't hurt. But it's up to me to capture the interest of those people within the first couple of pages. Just like George gave me my opportunity in Hollywood, I still had to write the script that ultimately landed me my job on Star Trek:TNG.

- Given the choice, would you take a New York Times bestseller, or a World Fantasy Award/Hugo Award? Why, exactly?

Can't I have both? :) Okay, seriously. That's a hard question. I think I'd take the bestseller status over the award. And it's not because of the money. I think every writer really wants to speak to another person, to tell them a story, and give them hours where as a reader they are swept away into a new world. I know I love those books where I lose all track of time, and I don't want to put the book down. When you make the top ten list of the NY Times you are managing to tell your story to a lot of people, and it's that contact mind to mind that I find so intoxicating. It's one of the powers of television. When you realize that even a poorly performing show is going to be seen by 20 million people -- well, it's overwhelming.

- What authors make you shake your head in admiration? Many SFF authors don't read much inside the genre. Is it the case with you?

I still enjoy many science fiction writers. I guess most of my reading for pleasure is in the field and I especially love mysteries. Who do I admire? Okay, setting aside the Big Dog ie George let me run out some authors. I really like Lois McMaster Bujold and Robin Hobb. Daniel Abraham. Walter Jon Williams. John Scalzi. Dan Simmons Vernor Vinge. Terry Pratchett. Sheri Tepper. Okay, I'm going to stop inside the field. Outside the field I love Dorothy Dunnet's Nicolo series. Mysteries I really like Michael Connelly. This is a really hard question because I like so many authors.

- Cover art has become a very hot topic of late. What are your thoughts pertaining to that facet of a novel, and what do you think of the cover that graces THE EDGE OF REASON?

I think cover art is critical. A interesting cover will make be pick up a book by an unknown author. I'm really very happy with my cover on THE EDGE OF REASON. It could have been so cheesy, and the terrific art department at Tor found a way to avoid any of those pitfalls.

- More and more, authors/editors/publicists/agents are discovering the potential of all the SFF blogs/websites/message boards on the internet. Do you keep an eye on what's being discussed out there, especially if it concerns you? Or is it too much of a distraction?

I enjoy reading discussion on the blogs and websites, but I never read them as they pertain to my book. It makes me feel kind of squiggy. Because of the curious circumstance that led to you reviewing my novel, I read your review, but mostly I avoid such discussions. Writers spend enough time navel gazing without running all over the internet in search of more conversations that are all about _Them_.

- Honestly, do you believe that the speculative fiction genre will ever come to be recognized as veritable literature? Truth be told, in my opinion there has never been this many good books/series as we have right now, and yet there is still very little respect (not to say none) associated with the genre.

I think we won. Look at television and movies -- it's all speculative fiction that's driving the engine. I know we all get frustrated at being dismissed as "that kid stuff", but maybe we're safer that way. If we ever start being discussed in Literature Classes (imagine the pompous tone of voice) I'm afraid that we'll fall into that traps that afflict mainstream writers. They all seem to be writing for each other or for the critics instead of writing cracking good stories for real readers. We do have wonderful writers and wonderful books, but I never want to forget that I'm an entertainer. I want to sweep you out of your living room and into a new world, and have the reader forget about the leaky faucet of their day job.

- So what's the scoop on the forthcoming Wild Card novel, BUSTED FLUSH? Give us something to look forward to!

BUSTED FLUSH has a very complicated plot, and I'm still amazed that we pulled it off. But we did, and in some ways I think it's stronger than INSIDE STRAIGHT. The kids start to understand that the world is a very complicated place, and actions have consequences. (And here's that navel gazing writer thing again). My character, Noel, discovers he has a soul and maybe even a heart.

- Doesn't it make you feel a bit "dirty" that I was forced to read this due to a Dallas Cowboys loss at the hands of George R. R. Martin's New York Giants last January? Surely, it has to weigh on your conscience when you go to sleep at night. . .

Not in the least. Actually it's the only time in my life that I really cared about the outcome of a football game. :) I know the reach of your website, and while it was scary (you might have hated the novel), it was such a great opportunity to get the word out to a broad audience about THE EDGE OF REASON.

Also, I thought it was really funny that you sports guys got hoisted on petards of your own making.